Health Department dismisses rumours of new Covid-19 variant

The Department of Health has dismissed rumours of a new Covid-19 variant, saying instead that there are three respiratory syncytial viruses (RSV) that are of more concern.

Professor Cheryl Cohen, head of the Centre for Respiratory Disease and Meningitis at the National Institute for Communicable Disease (NICD) said while flu season had not started yet, the number of cases were expected to increase over the coming weeks.

“In the last few weeks, we have started to see the number of cases increasing slowly, but the numbers have not crossed the seasonal threshold,” said Professor Cohen.

The NICD has a surveillance system that monitors the circulation of respiratory viruses throughout the country and has notified the department that it is currently in the peak season of RSV, which can be confused by some people with Covid-19 or SARS-CoV-2 due to common symptoms.

Professor Salim Abdool Karim, director of the Centre for the Aids Programme of Research in SA (Caprisa) and one of the country’s chief Covid-19 advisers, has named influenza (flu) and three other viruses to rather watch out for, as the most recent Covid variant cases (JN1) are very low.

“As the winter season approaches, it is important to note that there are three important viruses which occur this time of year,” said Abdool Karim, who also cautioned the public to be vigilant of fake news.

He said the three are respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which are more of a concern for children than adults; rhino virus and adenovirus, which are mild cases that cause “the sniffles”.

Then there is also the flu, which is when a wave of infections occur during May, June and July.

Some of the common flu symptoms are, fever or feeling feverish or chills, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle or body aches, headaches and fatigue (tiredness).

The Department of Health has also urged the public to get their flu vaccinations to combat the virus. Although the flu season is only set to begin in a few weeks, those who are most vulnerable to it are pregnant women who are within six weeks of giving birth, people living with HIV, individuals with tuberculosis, persons of any age with chronic diseases, persons aged 65 and persons over the age of 18 receiving chronic aspirin therapy.